Sea monsters and mermaid princesses
by Margo Alaska
Summary: One turtle, one mermaid princess and one very flusttered overprotective pirate. A Hook and Ariel one shot.
1. Sea monsters and mermaid princesses

**Sea monsters and mermaid princesses**

As she settled down further in her blankets, she sleepily marveled on the silent tranquility of the early morning, when the night kissed the morning awake, and the sun was just about to smile on the cloudless sky. The peace and quiet were deserting the ocean as the seagulls were only starting to fly, but the sea was still mellow like soft sand on the morning. Until, of course, a loud scream had to pierce the dawn.

"Ariel WAKE UP!" his voice roared in her ear and he scrambled around their cabin, frantic and loud as a tornado.

"My goodness, Killian, what is the matter?" she muttered and rubbed her eyes and searched for her pirate. He was against the window, shadows in his eyes and the early morning light around him like a cloud.

"She's not here." he whispered, his voice cracking with panic.

She rose slightly and looked at the window, where the emptiness pulled at her heart strings, but when she turned, he was already stomping to the door, hasty and desperate, holding _her _blanket.

"Bugger!" he swore, as he yanked the door open.

Outside, the crew was preparing the ship for the day. They grunted and talked softly to each other, not wanting to wake up the captain and his lady. But they stopped in shock to see him so disheveled.

"Alright mates!" he yelled loudly, and they gathered in front of stirring wheel. "She's missing! You know what to do. Don't let any corner, any crook of this old boat unsearched! Hurry!"

The sailors starting running around like headless chickens, and Killian turned to his wife as she came out of the cabin. Killian was holding the blanket to his face, it was pink and embroidered with sea shells, and sea turtles, her favorite animal. The lace and yarn were a deep contrast against his beard and his dark blue eyes. Those sky eyes were desolating in their worry, and she stared at him, with heaviness in her heart. Her poor pirate was not very good at handling the stormy unpredictability of _her_ just yet.

"Come here, love. She'll be alright." she reassured him as he gathered her in his arms, but he trembled and she thought a ship during a strong had never shaken like he did now. He clinged to her, the small red haired mermaid comforting the mighty pirate.

"I woke up and," he mumbled against her neck, and she imagined the warmth and saltiness of a stray tear travelling down her collarbone, "she was gone. I have never been more frightened in my life."

He bit his bottom lip and tried to stop the reckless race his heart was doing inside his chest. Ariel hummed and caressed his head, the warmth of the gesture natural and common nowadays. She had woken up many mornings to find him on the window, holding her and blabbering to her about mountains and sea castles, about princesses and towers. She had stayed in bed, silently crying out of joy, as he kissed her and promised to slay dragons and protect her always, to show her rainbows and give her a star for every birthday she would have. During those moments, she loved him so much, the seams of her heart threatened to rip and to cover them in light and adoration, as he hummed and swayed in front of the window, teaching her to welcome the morning with a smile and a song. He brought her seashells and stayed with her for hours making castles and silly games, and her giggles could be heard all around the deck. There was even a small turtle in a glass bowl he had bought at the market, and he would place the diminute turtle on her small legs and the turtle, Sunny was his name, would crawl over her and she would squeal and laugh and his face during those afternoons with Sunny and her was like a sunrise, pure and open.

But as lovely as he was, she worried about him. He was so overprotective, the perfect example was right now. How his eyes were blank and unstaring, fixed in the horizon, as the bottomless concern of not knowing where she was, eat away his soul. The pain of seeing Killian like this was something Ariel had yet to fix, yet to teach him how to control.

"Captain!" a yell came from the bottom quarters, and giggles could be heard from the darkness of the stairs. His muscles relaxed under her hands and he was about to sprint towards the sound, but she grasped his hand. He turned to her and his eyes were like the ocean trying to escape restrain, distressed and powerful, but she held on. She knew her ocean just fine, she could tame him down.

"Daddy daddy!" the soft, childish voice rose from the pit of the stairs as the cook John carried her and she squirmed in his arm to get to where they were. Ariel smiled at the sight of her fierce pirate trembling like a rackety palm tree hit by the strong ocean breeze at night.

"Kailani, come here!" he stammered and as soon as she was set down on the deck, she ran and the sailors let a collective sigh. Killian crouched in front of Ariel and their one year old daughter dogded legs and boxes. Her red hair was bright and exquisite and the curls tumbled and danced behind her as she darted to her parents. She looked like an orchid, all white creaminess and startling red against the clear light blue morning sky.

Kailani reached her father's arms and he held her and covered her rosy cheeks with kisses. The baby shrieked as her father's beard scratched and started slapping her father's face away.

"Daddy no! Bad daddy, itches!" she insisted and her chubby hands grabbed Killian's nose and gave a good pull. Killian yelped, and the sailors sniggered loudly and he threw a glare over his daughter's head. She smiled beautifully and gave his nose a kiss, but wiggled in his arms and crawled to her mother's feet.

"Mama mama, Sunny hungry!" she beamed as she showed her the small turtle hidden in her pocket. Ariel laughed unrestrained at her sneaky little daughter who stole her pet and went to the bottom quarters looking for food.

"Little sea monster, how did you get Sunny out of his tank?" Ariel inquired and Kailani winked at her with those big sky blue eyes. She might have Ariel's peaches and cream complexion, and the scarlet curls that stood out against the sea background, but her eyes were all Killian, playful and alluring. She was every bit the daughter of sea and sky, as her name conveyed.

"Thank you John" Killian acknowledged and the cook smiled at the family as he turned back, hiding a smile. The captain was a good father, even though he worried himself sick. But the little Kailani was just like her mother, always exploring and curious. She was a handful for the crew, but Ariel always had patience and a smile to give to her daughter. Killian, on the other hand, was about to throw himself overboard every time the little redhead escaped him for five minutes.

Killian stared at his two girls and decided his daughter was getting an earful, she couldn't be running around a pirate ship, it was dangerous, it was dreadful and she was too small and too precious to be doing that sort of nonsense. Ariel was feeding Sunny as Kailani touched the turtle's shell, they were both smiling, and when he cleared his throat, two very similar faces turned to him. The same nose, small as a closed rose, the bee-stung mouth with pale cherry lips, the long lashes that touched their reddish eyebrows, and the adoration clear in their wide eyes. His own face softened at the sight, but it was loving apprehension that made him scold his daughter.

"Kailani, you can't go running off in the middle of dawn because of Sunny. You have to stay in your crib and be a good girl, you know that." he commanded, but as the baby's lip started to quiver, a full wail about to explode, he regretted his harsh words. Kailani started crying in earnest, and buried her face in her mother's chest. Ariel's scowl turned to stony anger, and he almost felt like a sea wave had sunk him and punished his foolhardiness. She lifted her daughter and her glare froze him to the spot, her mouth was like coral, hard and unrelenting, and she turned her back to him. He could hear the soothing lullaby she sang as she rocked the baby and they whirled and the wails calmed down. Kailani was sucking on her thumb as Ariel looked to him and promised with her glower: _"We need to talk"_.

When she returned, Kailani was talking and gesturing to Mr. Smee and she was dressed in a light green dress. Ariel beckoning him closer and her faces was calmer, like a shore after an especially rough night under the tide's power. She touched his chest, her hand on his heart and his face was regretful, but he tried to hide it.

"Love, we've talked about this. You can't protect her from everything. She's a baby and babies like to crawl and discover. I love you Killian, but I won't have you restricting our daughter. She's not be keep safe in a glass castle like a fragile princess. She won't have my childhood, she's allowed to learn and be curious and disclose the world." she dictated. Her voice was implacable, but her eyes were soft, extending him a pardon over his mistake.

"Lani and I are going to the beach for a while. You can join us after you reconsider your words." she added and kissed his cheek.

* * *

As the sun burned high in the sky at midday, the freshness of the sea barely enough to cool him down, he watched his baby swim and splash her mother. Ariel was clapping and splashing Kailani back, their laughter was a mermaid song of glee and he sat on the beach, trying to see how he went wrong. He loved his baby girl, more than his own air, more than his own heartbeat, more than any treasure he could ever possess. She was his sea and his sky.

But his fear of his past and his wrongness bordered on his mind, always reminding him of his true nature. He was never meant to be a father, he had been cruel and evil to the Lost Boys, that past couldn't be buried. He was like a rotten tree, and those were never meant for good foundation. Bless the seas for Ariel, she was kind-hearted and sweet-spoken, tender and caring, her little princess was content in her mother's arms from the very moment she was born and opened her eyes to reveal astounding blue-green depths. As she grew, as she learned to crawl, as she mumbled her first "dada" and her hair started to brighten into coopery curls, her eyes cleared to aquamarine blue just like his. It never failed to amaze him, seeing a bit of himself in the fiery restless miracle that was Kailani.

Ariel noticed him and waved at him, she grabbed the baby and tried to come to him. A wave strong enough to tackle them down made her go under and he stood up, his heart in his throat. But the pair just came up spluttering and laughing, Kailani screeching and hooting. Ariel balanced the baby on her hip as she came to stand in front of him.

"Hello stranger." she spoke and Kailani made grabby hands at him. He complied and she tried to crawl over his neck.

"Daddy, horsey." she asked. He putted her in his shoulders and she laughed delighted, and gave his head a kiss. His hand held her back as she grabbed his hair and yanked, like a horse's reins, and he made horse sounds to please her. Ariel smiled at the father of her baby and marveled how he could possibly think he was not a good father? He would usually watch her sleep, he carved her sea turtles and castles in wood, he collected shells for her, and he even painted her crib. But his fear of his own ineptitude would drown Kailani in a world of restrictions if he didn't learn to control that.

"Did you reassess?" Ariel questioned him, while Kailani mumbled on about sea horses and crabs. He looked like a sky about to break into heavy thunder and painful rain, she seized his hand and gave it a squeeze. He stared into her green eyes and tried to apologize, but she kissed him, a sweet light kiss of forgiveness. Kailani kissed his head again and he smiled against Ariel's lips. What more could he want from his two favorite girls?

"I don't know how to change." he confessed, a cheeky smile but his eyes were still clouded. She caressed his chin and smiled at him, that ever flowing love coming between them and she knew things would be ok.

"I'll help you every time. Kailani loves you very much and so do I."

"Love you daddy!" the baby screamed and startled them both. They laughed and Ariel tried to grab her from her husband's shoulders. She was still too small and she huffed in annoyance. He put Kailani down and she started to run away from them, back to the ocean.

"Mama, swim again!" she said and Killian looked ready to have a mental breakdown. She pinched his arse and he yelped, surprised.

"She'll be fine, Killian."

He looked as the baby splashed and grabbed shells. She spread her arms wide open and hugged the wave that came, covering her in sea foam and sand. He smiled with understanding.

"Aye, she will. She's a mermaid princess after all."

Ariel rested her head against him and giggled.

"A pirate princess as well. You think she'll run away with boys and drink into the long hours of the night, like her papa did?"

Killian groaned and started jogging to his daughter. He turned to Ariel as he was almost with Kailani and yelled:

"I'm reconsidering the whole glass castle thing, mermaid, so don't tempt me!"

**The end**

* * *

**A/N:** This baby one shot was inspired by tumblr user annuhliese who made an adorable graphic last night and I couldn't help myself. Also, many ideas were originally by Abby, tumblr user withahappyrefrain. I hope you liked, please please review!


	2. You're just a small bump unknown

**A/N:** This goes to vintagegirl1912, she gave me the idea to write about Hook's first reaction when he finds out she's pregnant. I'm sorry this is a lot darker and and angsty than I intended it to be. Thanks to Abby (withahappyrefrain) for the help! You're a sweetheart!

* * *

**Flashback:**

**You're just a small bump unknown**

"I think I'm pregnant" she whispers to him in the ghost of the night. Killian holds himself frozen over her body, and the kiss he intended dies on her belly button, as he becomes a statue. He can feel her impatience and her fear at his reaction, but his own worthlessness was more profound than any fear she could have. He sees tears glistening in her eyelids as he keeps quiet and the moon whispers of the loving and tenderness that was about to happen before this news. She looks to the window, unable to search his blue eyes anymore, terrified of finding any rejection in what his silence is speaking to her. She sees the seas hushed and unmoving, and her belly at the moment is just like that, but she's almost certain in a few months it won't be anymore. Life will bloom inside of her and the very man she loves, the one who created that life with her, is completely unmoving over her. She never knew the night could be this cold, as if the ice from his eyes is embedded in her heart and the silence of his breathing howls louder than any fear she ever had.

"Killian, please, say something." she begs, finally relenting under the static of his dead stare and he seems to remember her, he discovers himself over her and he returns to life. He smiles, but there are dead wishes and long ago aches behind that smile and she feels the tears spilling from her eyes as he offers her a broken smile, like a dried out shore with no sea. She smiles in return, but he's still silent and that is weighing down on her lungs and she takes a deep breath.

"Ariel, let's wait and see, shall we?" he surrenders, but his eyes are haunted, his smile is empty. She feels a strengthening inside of her. She has sea water in her veins, she is the daughter of the ocean, and she will not yield under the phantom hurting of the man she loves. She was made to endure tempests and typhoons, rocks in the bottom of the ocean forger her spirit and she will not be broken down because of a past of which she has no guilt. If she's pregnant and he continues like this, she will prevail and so will her baby. This pain of his will not sink them all under.

"Let's go to sleep, we'll talk in the morning" she answers him, but his back is turned to her. She turns to the window and notices the ocean quickened, angering. She smiles, she's angry too.

A week passes and her sailor becomes dark and conflicted, she feels his dreams turn into shadows and old monsters in their bed and he lies awake and petrified. She wonders what troubles him inside his mind, but whenever she stirs, he pretends to be asleep and she turns into herself and grazes her lower stomach. She thinks to her baby, if there is any baby growing inside her: "_Be strong, be safe, I love you, and he will too_". But the doubts he carries around are starting to pull her down as well.

She comes in the cabin and he's staring at a piece of wood, she sees a knife next to him and she stops, puzzled. He seems to not notice her and starts carving a sea turtle. She understands then what he's doing. He's making baby toys. She covers her mouth as a sob threatens to escape her and reach him. She longs to hold him and accept his fears, and promise him to bring him back to her, to stop the past from coming to him again. But she still feels his hesitation, it's in the way he carves, unsteady and reckless. He's angry at himself, she realizes.

"Will you trust me?" she asks, and he turns in shock and cuts himself.

"Bugger," he mutters, but he smiles at her and she sees a little bit of her pirate back. He sobers down quickly, though.

"I'm alright." he means about the cut and the question. She stiffens and the ferocity of the sea comes back to her eyes and he looks intently, intrigued at her words that are to come.

"Well, I'm bloody not! You've been a corpse lately, you mindless piece of arse! Are you so disgusted by our baby that you can't bear to look at me? You're as much to blame as I am! I won't let this baby feel unwanted!" she bellows and he accepts the punches of her loud voice as calmly as sinking under a strong tide.

"Come sit with me." he mumbles, and she tries to hold her hard words back, the wish to strike him very strong in the desire to protect her baby. He's so calm and she's resentful, but she loves him and that pulls her to his side. He surprises her by putting his head in her lap, and she waits, expecting the truth to show his ugly head, finally. She will slay the past behind.

"When I was in Neverland, there was a little boy named Peter. He was happy and pure, he hid from pain or sadness. The Lost Boys and him, they were playful and they searched adventure, just like I did. But they didn't know heartbreak, they didn't know the painful awareness of old mistakes, of regret burning in your eyes and the unrelenting pressure of not escaping anywhere, not even in land where no time pass and you never grew old. I detested them." his voice is hollow and she feels something moving. She caresses his hair and he takes a deep breath to continue.

"I was so angry, at Rumplestiltskin, at Milah, at myself. And they were so bloody free, so free, they even flied. Rage and guilt guided me and I willingly gave up control to those feelings inside my heart. I made it my goal to destroy happiness, to crush it like an ant under my boot. And those joyful children were the representation of that feeling I longed to obliterate. I hurt them so much, Ariel, I chased them and hunted them, like an old wound never healed, never closed. No matter how much I got to know them and to see how I was preventing them from living, and I was hiding in my wrath, I couldn't stop."

Her lap is moist and she thinks the baby is listening as well, because for the first time, there's movement inside her, like a fish swimming around her stomach and she holds back a giggle. Of course the baby would react to Killian's voice.

"I'm not good with children, Ariel. I can't forgive myself for so many mistakes I've made. I love you, but whatever life we've made, I'll burden it with my past. I can't be a father." he finishes and lets go of her and stands.

"Love, stop it please." she calls back and he turns to her, eyes reddened, face in the shadows of the cabin, a slight tremble to his hand. He's fragile right then, but she feels the tingle of life in her belly and she has to be strong, for the three of them.

"You didn't think you could love me and forget what a crushed heart looked like. And you did, for me, but mostly for you. Because you wanted to love me, and to feel loved. Can't you see our baby wanting the same? He just wants his father, not a pirate, nor a ghost. Killian, you have to let go of the past. Don't let it be your anchor, don't you want to sail free? I know you hurt Peter Pan and the Lost Boys. But they're not here, and our baby is not them. You won't hurt me, we've seen this already, and you won't hurt our baby. Forgive yourself, put the past behind and give our future a chance." she explains and the tears that bathe her cheeks and collarbone shine back in his eyes, but he's still chained.

"Come here." she beckons, and lifts her dress. Her ivory belly looks rounder than he remembers and he wonders how much hiding he's been doing lately, how much darkness he's let inside him again, for not noticing the change in the body of this once mermaid he loves so much. She takes his hand and puts it in her abdomen. He feels the warmth and softness of her skin, but then, as their hands travel together over her lower stomach, he realizes what he's feeling. A small bump. His child.

He tries to take back his hand, but she holds him there, circling the small bump, the slight hardness that wasn't there before. He understands why her skin is so warm. There's life beneath it. They made a life together. She's smiling, tears decorating her lashes and her sea eyes are wide and adoring, how could he resist such sight?

He kneels in front of her and puts his ear to her tummy, trying to feel more of _him_, the baby inside the woman he loves. Will he have her smile and her eyes, or his hair and his nose? Will he have red hair or black hair? Will he be small, like her, or slim and tall, like him? Will his voice be like his mother's, melodious, soothing, sea-foam calm and quiet? Or will he be hard and strong and thunderous, like an angry sea storm? He promises to the little one: "_You can wrap your fingers round my thumb and hold me tight, and you'll be alright. I'm sorry I was scared, I won't be anymore._"

"Are you alright now?" she inquires, but she feels his smile against her belly and she knows he's accepting the news. This is what she hoped for, a fresh start, a happy carefree man to share this miracle. She knows the darkness will come again, but she's ready, and so is the baby. This is a child made of ocean and sky, of pasts that hurt them both and made them stronger, this is a child of ships and adventures, he will have curiosity in his veins and temper in his heart. But he will be alright. Because his parents love him.

"Do you want to name him?" she asks him and he looks up to her, excitement makes his eyes flash like a clear sky.

"Can we name him Peter? I think that name deserves some better memories." he added, and his smile is simple and open.

"Of course, sweetheart. But what if it's a girl?" she pauses and he frowns for a second, completely perplexed by the possibility.

"Are you questioning my virility, woman? It's going to be a small pirate, wait and see!"

She laughs, but she can't help but wonder if their baby is going to surprise them both.

* * *

**A/N:** This was supposed to be cute and fluffly, but Killian in my mind was not in the mood for that. So this chapter came out like this, I hope you didn't hate it, and please review even if you did, so I know what I could change! Also, as you obviously know, Hook was very wrong about his virility lol. I've just had a lot of Peter Pan feelings lately so I wanted to use that name. Remember to review pretty please!


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